Apparatus and method for determining a load amount in a laundry treating appliance during loading and providing indications regarding same

ABSTRACT

An apparatus and method for operating a laundry treating appliance includes determining an amount of laundry load during loading of the laundry treating appliance and provides indications to a user regarding the monitored amount.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Laundry treating appliances, such as a washing machine in which a drumdefines a treating chamber for receiving a laundry load, may implementcycles of operation, which may vary according to the size of the laundryload in the drum. The size of the laundry load may be manually input bythe user through a user interface or may be automatically determined bythe washing machine during the cycle of operation. For manual input bythe user, the user may oftentimes overestimate or underestimate the loadsize, thereby resulting in a less than optimal treating performance.Many methods are known for the washing machine to automaticallydetermine the load size during the cycle of operation, such as byemploying an output of the motor that drives the drum.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of the invention a method of operating a laundrytreating appliance includes monitoring the amount of laundry placed inthe treating chamber during loading, comparing the monitored amount to apredetermined threshold, determining at least one selectable cycle ofoperation when the monitored amount satisfies the predeterminedthreshold, and indicating the at least one selectable cycle of operationon the user interface of the laundry treating appliance.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of a laundry treating appliance according toone embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a controller of the laundry treatingappliance of FIG. 1.

FIGS. 3-8 are partial front views of embodiments of exemplary userinterfaces of the laundry treating appliance of FIG. 1.

FIG. 9 is a flow chart of a method for determining selectable cycles ofoperation based on a determined load size in the laundry treatingappliance of FIG. 1 and indicating the same to a user according to asecond embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 10 is a flow chart of a method for determining a filled conditionfor a selected cycle of operation of the treating appliance of FIG. 1and indicating the same to a user according to a third embodiment of theinvention.

DESCRIPTION OF AN EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

FIG. 1 illustrates a laundry treating appliance in the form of a washingmachine 10 according to one embodiment of the invention. The laundrytreating appliance may be any machine that treats articles such asclothing or fabrics. Non-limiting examples of the laundry treatingappliance may include a vertical washing machine; a combination washingmachine and dryer; and a refreshing/revitalizing machine. The washingmachine 10 described herein shares many features of a traditionalautomatic washing machine, which will not be described in detail exceptas necessary for a complete understanding of the invention.

Washing machines are typically categorized as either a vertical axiswashing machine or a horizontal axis washing machine. As used herein,the “vertical axis” washing machine refers to a washing machine having arotatable drum, perforate or imperforate, that holds fabric items and afabric moving element, such as an agitator, impeller, nutator, and thelike, that induces movement of the fabric items to impart mechanicalenergy to the fabric articles for cleaning action. In some vertical axiswashing machines, the drum rotates about a vertical axis generallyperpendicular to a surface that supports the washing machine. However,the rotational axis need not be vertical. The drum may rotate about anaxis inclined relative to the vertical axis. As used herein, the“horizontal axis” washing machine refers to a washing machine having arotatable drum, perforated or imperforate, that holds fabric items andwashes the fabric items by the fabric items rubbing against one anotheras the drum rotates. In horizontal axis washing machines, the clothesare lifted by the rotating drum and then fall in response to gravity toform a tumbling action that imparts the mechanical energy to the fabricarticles. In some horizontal axis washing machines, the drum rotatesabout a horizontal axis generally parallel to a surface that supportsthe washing machine. However, the rotational axis need not behorizontal. The drum may rotate about an axis inclined relative to thehorizontal axis. Vertical axis and horizontal axis machines are bestdifferentiated by the manner in which they impart mechanical energy tothe fabric articles. In vertical axis machines, a clothes mover, such asan agitator, auger, impeller, to name a few, moves within a drum toimpart mechanical energy directly to the clothes or indirectly throughwash liquid in the drum. The clothes mover may typically be moved in areciprocating rotational movement. The illustrated exemplary washingmachine of FIG. 1 is a horizontal axis washing machine.

The washing machine 10 may include a housing 12, which may be a cabinetor a frame to which decorative panels are mounted. A rotatable drum 18may be disposed within an interior of the housing 12 and may at leastpartially define a treating chamber 20 for treating laundry. Therotatable drum 18 may be mounted within an imperforate tub 22, which maybe suspended within the housing 12 by a resilient suspension system 24.Both the tub 22 and the drum 18 may be selectively closed by a door 25.A bellows 26 couples an open face of the tub 22 with the housing 12, andthe door 25 seals against the bellows 26 when the door 25 closes the tub22. The drum 18 may include a plurality of perforations 27, such thatliquid may flow between the tub 22 and the drum 18 through theperforations 27. The drum 18 may further include a plurality of baffles28 disposed on an inner surface of the drum 18 to lift fabric itemsforming a laundry load contained in the laundry treating chamber 20while the drum 18 rotates. A motor 30 may be coupled to the drum 18through a drive shaft 32 for selective rotation of the treating chamber20 during a cycle of operation. It may also be within the scope of theinvention for the motor 30 to be coupled with the drive shaft 32 througha drive belt for selective rotation of the treating chamber 20. Themotor 30 may rotate the drum 18 at multiple or variable speeds in eitherrotational direction.

While the illustrated washing machine 10 includes both the tub 22 andthe drum 18, with the drum 18 defining the laundry treating chamber 20,it is within the scope of the invention for the washing machine 10 toinclude only one receptacle, with the receptacle defining the laundrytreating chamber for receiving a laundry load to be treated.

A liquid supply and recirculation system 40 may also be included in thewashing machine 10. Liquid, such as water, may be supplied to thewashing machine 10 from a water supply 42, such as a household watersupply. A supply conduit 44 may fluidly couple the water supply 42 tothe tub 22 and a treating chemistry dispenser 46. The supply conduit 44may be provided with an inlet valve 48 for controlling the flow ofliquid from the water supply 42 through the supply conduit 44 to thetreating chemistry dispenser 46. The treating chemistry dispenser 46 maybe a single-use dispenser, that stores and dispenses a single dose oftreating chemistry and must be refilled for each cycle of operation, ora multiple-use dispenser, also referred to as a bulk dispenser, thatstores and dispenses multiple doses of treating chemistry over multipleexecutions of a cycle of operation.

A liquid conduit 50 may fluidly couple the treating chemistry dispenser46 with the tub 22. The liquid conduit 50 may couple with the tub 22 atany suitable location on the tub 22 and is shown as being coupled to afront wall of the tub 22 for exemplary purposes. The liquid that flowsfrom the treating chemistry dispenser 46 through the liquid conduit 50to the tub 22 typically enters a space between the tub 22 and the drum18 and may flow by gravity to a sump 52 formed in part by a lowerportion of the tub 22. The sump 52 may also be formed by a sump conduit54 that may fluidly couple the lower portion of the tub 22 to a pump 56.The pump 56 may direct fluid to a drain conduit 58, which may drain theliquid from the washing machine 10, or to a recirculation conduit 60,which may terminate at a recirculation inlet 62. The recirculation inlet62 may direct the liquid from the recirculation conduit 60 into the drum18. The recirculation inlet 62 may introduce the liquid into the drum 18in any suitable manner, such as by spraying, dripping, or providing asteady flow of the liquid. While the recirculation inlet 62 isillustrated as being located at a lower portion of the tub 22 it iscontemplated that it may be located in alternative locations includingan upper portion of tub 22.

Additionally, the liquid supply and recirculation system 40 may differfrom the configuration shown in FIG. 1, such as by inclusion of othervalves, conduits, wash aid dispensers, heaters, sensors, such as waterlevel sensors and temperature sensors, and the like, to control the flowof treating liquid through the washing machine 10 and for theintroduction of more than one type of detergent/wash aid. Further, theliquid supply and recirculation system 40 need not include therecirculation portion of the system or may include other types ofrecirculation systems.

A heater, such as sump heater 63 or steam generator 65, may be providedfor heating the liquid and/or the laundry load. The sump heater 63 isillustrated as a resistive heating element. The sump heater 63 may beused alone or in combination with the steam generator 65 to heat theliquid and/or the laundry load.

One or more sensors 66 may also be included in the washing machine 10and may be positioned in any suitable location for detecting the amountof laundry placed in the treating chamber 20. By way of non-limitingexample, it is contemplated that the amount of laundry in the treatingchamber may be determined based on the weight of the laundry and/or thevolume of laundry in the treating chamber. Thus, the one or more sensors66 may output a signal indicative of either the weight of the laundryload in the treating chamber 20 or the volume of the laundry load in thetreating chamber 20. The one or more sensors 66 may be any suitable typeof sensor capable of measuring the weight or volume of laundry in thetreating chamber 20. Non-limiting examples of sensors 66 for measuringthe weight of the laundry may include load volume, pressure, or forcetransducers which may include, for example, load cells and straingauges. It has been contemplated that the one or more such sensors 66may be operably coupled to the suspension system 24 to sense the weightborne by the suspension system 24. The weight borne by the suspensionsystem 24 correlates to the weight of the laundry loaded into thetreating chamber 20 such that the sensor 66 may indicate the weight ofthe laundry loaded in the treating chamber 20. In the case of a suitablesensor 66 for determining volume it is contemplated that an IR oroptical based sensor may be used to determine the volume of laundrylocated in the treating chamber 20

Alternatively, it has been contemplated that the washing machine 10 mayhave one or more pairs of feet 67 extending from the housing 12 andsupporting the housing 12 on the floor and that a weight sensor (notshown) may be operably coupled to at least one of the feet 67 to sensethe weight borne by that foot 67, which correlates to the weight of thelaundry loaded into the treating chamber 20. Such a weight sensor may beoperably coupled to each of the feet 67 to obtain a more accurateindication of the weight of the laundry loaded into the treating chamber20. Thus, it is contemplated that the one or more weight sensors may beapplied in either tension or compression to measure the weight of thelaundry in the treating chamber 20.

A controller 68 may be located within the housing 12 for controlling theoperation of the washing machine 10 to implement one or more cycles ofoperation, which may be stored in a memory of the controller 68.Examples, without limitation, of cycles of operation include: wash,heavy duty wash, delicate wash, quick wash, refresh, rinse only, andtimed wash. A user interface 70 may also be included on the housing 12and may include one or more knobs, switches, displays, and the like forcommunicating with the user, such as to receive input and provideoutput.

As illustrated in FIG. 2, the controller 68 may be provided with amemory 72 and a central processing unit (CPU) 74. The memory 72 may beused for storing the control software in the form executableinstructions that may be executed by the CPU 74 in executing one or morecycles of operation using the washing machine 10 and any additionalsoftware. The memory 72 may also be used to store information, such as adatabase or table, and to store data received from one or morecomponents of the washing machine 10 that may be communicably coupledwith the controller 68 as needed to execute the cycle of operation.

The controller 68 may be operably coupled with one or more components ofthe washing machine 10 for communicating with and controlling theoperation of the component to complete a cycle of operation. Forexample, the controller 68 may be coupled with the one or more sensors66 for receiving the output of the sensors 66 indicative of the amountof laundry, the motor 30 for controlling the direction and speed ofrotation of the drum 18, and the pump 56 for draining and recirculatingwash water in the sump 52. The controller 68 may also be operablycoupled to the inlet valve 48, the steam generator 65, the sump heater63, and the treatment dispenser 46 to control operation of the componentfor implementing the cycle of operation. The controller 68 may alsoreceive input from one or more sensors 76, which are known in the art.Non-limiting examples of sensors that may be communicably coupled withthe controller 68 include: a treating chamber temperature sensor, amoisture sensor, a drum position sensor, a motor torque sensor, a motorspeed sensor, a level sensor, etc. By way of non-limiting example, alevel sensor 76 may output a signal indicative of a levelness of thelaundry treating appliance and/or the treating chamber to the controller68. Such a level sensor may include any suitable type of sensorincluding a bubble sensor, which may use a leveling bubble to indicatethe levelness of the laundry treating appliance and/or the treatingchamber to the controller 68. The controller 68 may also be operablycoupled with the user interface 70 for receiving user selected inputsand communicating information with the user.

The user interface 70 has been schematically illustrated as including anindicator 78. The indicator 78 may indicate to a user when laundry inthe treating chamber 20 satisfies a predetermined amount thresholdcorrelating to an optimally filled treating chamber 20 for a specificselected cycle. The indicator 78 may allow the user to see how muchlaundry may be needed to optimally fill the washing machine 10 for aselected cycle so that optimal cleaning of the load may be obtained. Ithas been contemplated that the indicator 78 may alternatively indicateto a user which cycles are selectable based on the laundry loaded in thetreating chamber 20. It has also been contemplated that the indicator 78may alternatively be located elsewhere on the washing machine 10. By wayof non-limiting examples such alternative locations may include on thehousing 12 near the door 25, on the bellows 26, or on the door 25. It isalso contemplated that the controller 68 may be capable of sendingwireless signals to a portable device such that the user may receiveindications through the device. By way of non-limiting example, thewashing machine 10 may be linked to a smartphone, which may act as theindicator and may indicate information to a user as described withrespect to the indicator 78 above. Thus, as the amount of laundry in thewashing machine 10 changes the display on the smartphone or portabledevice may change. The smartphone or portable device may also sendwireless signals to the washing machine 10 such that it may act as theuser interface for the washing machine 10. By way of non-limitingexample, the user may select an option on the smartphone and the washingmachine 10 may receive such selections and be operated accordingly.However, the remainder of this description will describe the indicator78 as being located on the user interface 70.

FIG. 3 illustrates a first exemplary portion of a user interface 70having an indicator 78 in the form of a laundry fill indicator. It isillustrated that the indicator 78 may have a simple system whichindicates only two different conditions of optimally loaded/filled oroverfilled for the cycle of operation selected by the user. Morespecifically, the indicator 78 has been illustrated as a single lightemitting diode (LED) 80 which may turn off or on to signify the twoconditions. Alternatively, the LED 80 may change color to signify aparticular status. For example, led 80 may be illuminated with a firstcolor, such as green, to inform a user that the treating chamber 20 isoptimally filled for the selected cycle, and may be illuminated with asecond color, such as red, to inform a user that the treating chamber isoverfilled for the selected cycle. The LED 80 may remain unlit if theamount of the laundry load in the treating chamber 20 is underfilled andhas not reached the optimally filled range for the selected cycle. Ithas been contemplated that an audible noise may be combined with the LED80 to additionally alert the user that the treating chamber 20 isoverfilled.

FIG. 4 illustrates that, alternatively, multiple LEDS 82, 83 and indicia84 may be used to indicate the two different conditions of optimallyloaded or overfilled for the cycle of operation selected by the user.For example, LED 82 may be illuminated with a color such as green toinform a user that the treating chamber 20 may be in an optimally filledrange for the selected cycle. If the load amount is below such anoptimally filled threshold the LED 82 may remain unlit to indicate thatthe optimal load amount has not yet been reached. Further, LED 83 may beilluminated with the same color or with a second color, such as red, toinform the user that the treating chamber 20 is overfilled for theselected cycle. It has been contemplated that an audible noise may becombined with the led to additionally alert the user that the treatingchamber 20 is overfilled.

FIG. 5 illustrates that the indicator 78 may be a range indicator orgraduated scale 90 illustrating the filled condition. The scale 90begins at zero, “0”, but need not. It has also been illustrated asincluding a range beyond or greater than the filled condition, which mayindicate to a user an overfilled condition for the selected cycle. Themiddle of the scale may indicate a filled threshold or expected optimalcleaning limit. If the user fills past this point, the display mayextend beyond the threshold to the overfilled condition and perhaps turnred indicating that overfilling has occurred and cleaning performancewill decrease. The scale 90 may give the user continuous feedback as themachine is filled.

FIG. 6 illustrates that the user interface 70 may include a messageprovider 92 in addition to the indicator 78. The message provider 92 mayprovide a status message based on a first status indicator, and may thenenhance the status message based on a second status indicator. Forexample, message provider 92 may provide a status message based on dataregarding the amount of laundry in the treating chamber 20 such as thechamber is underfilled, optimally filled or under filled for theselected cycle. An additional message provider may then enhance thestatus message and indicate to the user estimated energy or water usageor usage savings of having a load that size. Alternatively, it has beencontemplated that the LCD display may also be capable of indicating thefilled or overfilled condition of the treating chamber, and thus may beused as the indicator and a separate indicator may be unnecessary.

FIG. 7 illustrates a message provider 94 in the form of an array ofLEDs. One or more of the LEDs may be illuminated, possibly with one ormore different colors, in order to convey a message to the userregarding the selected cycle or the laundry loaded within the treatingchamber 20. It has been contemplated that such an array of LEDS may beused as the single indicator to inform a user that the treating chamber20 is in an optimally filled range.

FIG. 8 illustrates that it has also been contemplated that the indicator78 may include various LEDs 96 to indicate to a user which cycles areselectable based on the laundry loaded in the treating chamber 20. Morespecifically, the indicator 78 may include an LED 96 located next toindicia 97 indicating each of the cycles of operation. By way ofnon-limiting example, LEDs 96 have been shown next to indicia 97indicating wash, heavy duty wash, whitest whites, delicate wash, quickwash, refresh, rinse only, and timed wash cycles. The indicator 78 mayvisually communicate, through the LEDs 96, to the user when one or moreof the cycles of operation are available for selection by the user basedon the laundry loaded in the treating chamber 20. Each LED 96 may beilluminated as a first color if the cycle is available, as a secondcolor if the cycle is not available, and a third color if the cycle isselected by a user. The different illumination colors may be achieved byuse of a multi-color LED. In addition to or in place of differentcolors, different illumination intensities may be used to indicate thestatus. Alternatively, each LED 96 may be illuminated if the cycle isavailable for selection and remain un-illuminated if the cycle is notavailable for selection. The user may select a corresponding selectionbutton 98 located beside the LED 96, which indicates an available cycle,so that the illuminated cycle may be selected. When a start button 99 isdepressed, the LEDs 96 for the other available cycles may be turned off.

The previously described washing machine 10 may be used to implement oneor more embodiments of a method of the invention. Referring now to FIG.9, a flow chart of a method 100 for determining and indicatingselectable cycles of operation based on a monitored load amount loadedinto the laundry treating appliance according to a second embodiment ofthe invention is illustrated. The method 100 assumes that no fabricshave been loaded into the treating chamber 20 and that no user-selectionof a cycle of operation has occurred prior to the start of the method100. The method 100 may be initiated automatically when the door 25 isopened or when the user begins to place items within the treatingchamber 20.

The method 100 begins at 102 where the controller 68 monitors the amountof fabric items or a laundry load within the treating chamber 20 whenitems are being loaded into the treating chamber 20. It is contemplatedthat the amount monitored in the method 100 may be either a weight ofthe laundry loaded into the treating chamber 20 or a volume of thelaundry loaded into the treating chamber 20. The controller 68 maymonitor the amount by repeatedly sensing the amount of the laundryloaded into the treating chamber 20 during loading. More specifically,the controller 68 may receive a repeatedly output signal indicative ofthe amount of the laundry loaded in the treating chamber 20 from the oneor more amount sensors 66. Alternatively, the controller 68 mayrepeatedly sense the amount by sensing the change in amount of thetreating chamber 20 during loading as determined from the output signalfrom the one or more amount sensors 66.

At 104, the controller 68 may determine if the monitored amountsatisfies a predetermined amount threshold. The controller 68 mayaccomplish this by comparing the monitored amount to a predeterminedweigh threshold to see if the monitored amount satisfies thepredetermined threshold. To do this, the controller 68 may compare themonitored amount, either continuously or at set time intervals, to thepredetermined threshold value. The term “satisfies” the threshold isused herein to mean that the amount of the laundry within the treatingchamber 20 satisfies the predetermined threshold, such as being equal toor greater than the threshold value. It will be understood that such adetermination may easily be altered to be satisfied by apositive/negative comparison or a true/false comparison.

The predetermined threshold value may be determined experimentally andstored in the memory 72 of the controller 68. It has been contemplatedthat the predetermined amount threshold value may be a predeterminedamount range and that the predetermined amount threshold may besatisfied when the monitored amount falls within the predeterminedamount range. It has been contemplated that there may be multiplepredetermined amount threshold values and that during the comparison itmay be determined which of the multiple values is satisfied.

Thus, at 102 the controller 68 repeatedly receives the output from theamount sensor 66, which indicates the amount of the laundry loadedwithin the treating chamber 20, and at 104 compares it with apredetermined amount threshold stored in the memory 72 to determine whenthe amount of the laundry loaded into the treating chamber 20 satisfiesthe amount threshold. If the monitored amount does not satisfy thepredetermined threshold, then the controller 68 returns to 102 where thecontroller 68 continues to monitor the amount of laundry within thetreating chamber 20 and then compares the monitored amount to thepredetermined amount threshold at 104 to determine if the threshold issatisfied. When it is determined at 104 that the monitored amountsatisfies the predetermined threshold, then the controller 68 at 106 maydetermine one or more cycles of operation which may be optimallyimplemented for the laundry load located in the treating chamber 20. Thecontroller 68 may have a table of cycles that may be optimallyimplemented for the predetermined amount threshold stored in its memory72. The controller 68 may determine that only these cycles areselectable based on the monitored amount of the laundry load in thetreating chamber 20.

Once it is determined which cycles of operation are selectable, thecontroller 68 may correspondingly activate an indicator 78 on the userinterface 70 to indicate the one or more selectable cycles of operation.This may be done using any of the previously described methods.

A benefit of the method 100 is that the feedback provides the user withinformation regarding what cycles of operation are appropriate for theload that has been placed in the treating chamber 20. Such an indicationprovided to the user allows the user to optimally operate the washingmachine 10 based on the load in the treating chamber 20. Such feedbackgives additional information to the user so that the user does not haveto estimate the load size or guess which cycles will provide optimaltreating performance for the load.

FIG. 10 is a flow chart of a method 200 for determining a filledcondition for a selected cycle of operation of the treating appliance ofFIG. 1 and indicating the same to a user according to a third embodimentof the invention. The method 200 assumes that no fabrics have beenloaded into the treating chamber 20. The method 200 may be initiatedautomatically when the door 25 is opened or when the user selects acycle of operation.

The method 200 begins at 202 where the controller 68 determines whatcycle of operation has been selected by a user via the user interface70. This may also include determining which, if any, cycle modifiers areoptionally selected, such as a load color, and/or a fabric type.Examples of load colors are whites and colors. Examples of fabric typesare cotton, silk, polyester, delicates, permanent press, and heavy duty.

At 204 the controller 68 may set an amount threshold for the selectedcycle of operation. It is contemplated that the amount threshold maycorrelate to a weight threshold or a volume threshold based on thedetermined cycle of operation. The set amount threshold may bepredetermined experimentally and stored in the memory 72 of thecontroller 68. The set amount threshold may include a predeterminedvalue that is based on the determined cycle of operation and such avalue may be satisfied when the monitored amount is equal to or greaterthat the predetermined amount value. Alternatively, the set amountthreshold may include a predetermined amount range that is based on thedetermined cycle of operation and the predetermined amount threshold issatisfied when the monitored amount falls within the predeterminedamount range. It has also been contemplated that for a selected cyclethe controller 68 may set multiple predetermined amount threshold valuesor ranges correlating to a percentage (0%, 20%, etc.) of the optimalamount which may be provided in the treating chamber 20 for the selectedcycle.

The method 200 continues at 206 where the controller 68 monitors theamount of the laundry load within the treating chamber 20 when items arebeing loaded into the treating chamber 20. At 208, the controller 68compares the monitored amount with the set amount threshold, which waspreviously set at 204, to determine when the amount of the laundryloaded into the treating chamber satisfies the set amount threshold. Ifthe monitored amount does not satisfy the set threshold then thecontroller 68 returns to 206 where the controller 68 continues tomonitor the amount of laundry within the treating chamber 20 and thencompares it to the set amount threshold at 208 to see if the set amountthreshold is satisfied. When it is determined at 208 that the monitoredamount satisfies the set amount threshold then a filled condition of thewashing machine is determined at 210 by the controller 68. Morespecifically, the controller 68 may determine from the satisfied amountthreshold if the treating chamber 20 is optimally filled. Further, ifthe set amount thresholds correlate to a percentage (0%, 20%, etc.) ofthe optimal amount which may be provided in the treating chamber 20 forthe selected cycle, then the controller 68 may determine what percent ofthe treating chamber 20 has been filled.

At 212, the controller 68 may operate the indicator 78 to indicate thedetermined filled condition to the user. If the set amount threshold isan optimally filled amount for the selected cycle, then indicating thesatisfying of the predetermined amount threshold on the user interfaceat 212 may include visually indicating with the indicator 78 that thetreating chamber 20 is optimally filled for the selected cycle. If theset amount threshold is an overfilled amount, then indicating thesatisfying of such an amount may include visually indicating with theindicator 78 that the treating chamber is overfilled for the selectedcycle. Alternatively, the indication may include illuminating a portionof the range indicator 90 indicating a filled level correlating to thesatisfied amount threshold to give the user continuous feedback as themachine is filled. If the set amount range correlates to an optimallyfilled level then a unique indication may be given to the user when theamount is within the set amount range. Such unique indications mayinclude at least one of a different color, a color in combination with asound, a graphic, an animation, text, and sequentially displaying text.In this manner the user may be alerted that the laundry located withinthe treating chamber 20 is within the set amount range for the selectedcycle before the user overloads the treating chamber 20.

It is also contemplated that the washing machine 10 may continue tomonitor the amount of laundry placed within the treating chamber 20after an optimally filled condition has been indicated. In this mannerthe controller 68 may determine an overfilled condition of the treatingchamber 20. The indicator 78 and the range indicator 90 may both be usedto indicate an overfilled condition for the selected cycle if the usercontinues to load laundry into the treating chamber 20 beyond the setamount threshold.

A benefit of the method 200 is that the indication provided to the userduring loading allows the user to obtain a sense of the actual capacityof the treating chamber and allows the user the ability to optimallyfill the treating chamber 20 before starting the cycle of operation.Users often over or under fill the treating chamber 20 and the inventiondisclosed herein enables information to be given to the user such thatthe user may add or remove laundry to optimally fill the treatingchamber for the selected cycle of operation.

Further, depending on the type of load amount sensor used the sensor mayprovide additional benefits including that ability to determine how muchwater is being applied to the laundry machine, which in conjunction withthe known load mass may determine a recommended detergent amount.Further, exact knowledge of how much water weight versus fabric weightmay be used to determine the type of load. Further, the amount of waterremaining in the load may be determined and used during extraction.Further, the determined load amount may be used during the cycle such asto aid in unbalance management and as an input to detect bunching andentanglement. It is also contemplated that a moisture sensor may be usedto determine if the laundry loaded into the treating chamber 20 is wetor dry and the moisture content of such laundry. Such a moisture sensormay be operably coupled to the controller 68 such that the controller 68may receive a signal indicative of the moisture in the laundry and thecontroller 68 may display on the user interface an indication regardingsuch moisture content. By way of non-limiting example such an indicationmay indicate saturated states of the laundry and a potential water tocloth ratio. Further, the controller 68 may be capable of using suchmoisture information to determine a dry load weight estimated value andoperate the indicator 78 accordingly.

Depending on the type of sensor 66 used in the washing machine 10 theoutput of the sensor 66 may be skewed if either the treating chamber 20and/or washing machine 10 is not level. Thus, it is contemplated thateither of the methods described above may also include an initialsensing of any unlevelness of either the treating chamber 20 and/or thewashing machine 10 and adjusting the monitored amount to compensate forany sensed unlevelness. This calibration may occur regardless of whetherthe determined amount is a weight or a volume. By way of non-limitingexample, at the beginning of each method 100 and 200 the levelness ofthe treating chamber and/or the washing machine 10 may be calculated andif there is an unlevelness, then the controller 68 may calibrate theoutput of the sensors 66 such that the output of the sensors 66 may beadjusted according to any detected unlevelness. More specifically, thecontroller 68 may receive an output signal indicative of the levelnessor unlevelness of either the laundry treating appliance and/or thetreating chamber from a level sensor 76. The controller 68 may thenadjust the output from the sensor 66 according to the output receivedfrom the level sensor 76. In this manner, the controller 68 maycompensate for any sensed unlevelness in determining the amount of thelaundry load in the treating chamber 20. This may allow for thecontroller 68 to make a more accurate amount determination because thecalibrated sensors 66 will provide a more accurate indication of theamount of the laundry in the drum.

While the invention has been specifically described in connection withcertain specific embodiments thereof, it is to be understood that thisis by way of illustration and not of limitation. Reasonable variationand modification are possible within the scope of the forgoingdisclosure and drawings without departing from the spirit of theinvention which is defined in the appended claims.

1. A method of operating a laundry treating appliance having a treatingchamber for receiving laundry for treatment according to at least onecycle of operation, a controller for implementing the cycle ofoperation, and a user interface coupled to the controller, the methodcomprising: monitoring the amount of laundry placed in the treatingchamber during loading; comparing the monitored amount to apredetermined amount threshold; determining at least one selectablecycle of operation when the monitored amount satisfies the predeterminedamount threshold; and indicating the at least one selectable cycle ofoperation on the user interface of the laundry treating appliance. 2.The method of claim 1 wherein the monitoring the amount comprisesrepeatedly sensing the amount of the laundry during loading.
 3. Themethod of claim 2 wherein repeatedly sensing the amount comprisessensing a change in the amount of laundry in the treating chamber duringloading.
 4. The method of claim 2 wherein repeatedly sensing the amountcomprises the controller receiving output from a sensor, where theoutput is indicative of the amount of the laundry.
 5. The method ofclaim 1 wherein the predetermined amount threshold is a predeterminedamount range and the predetermined amount threshold is satisfied whenthe monitored amount falls within the predetermined amount range.
 6. Themethod of claim 1, further comprising compensating the monitored amountfor any unlevelness in at least one of the treating chamber and thetreating appliance.
 7. The method of claim 6, further comprising sensingany unlevelness of at least one of the treating chamber and the laundrytreating appliance and using the sensed unlevelness to compensate forthe monitored amount.
 8. The method of claim 1, further comprisingdetermining at least one of a selectable cycle option and a selectablecycle modifier when the monitored amount satisfies the predeterminedamount threshold and indicating the at least one of the selectable cycleoption and selectable cycle modifier on the user interface of thelaundry treating appliance.
 9. A method of operating a laundry treatingappliance having a treating chamber for receiving laundry for treatmentaccording to at least one cycle of operation, a controller forimplementing the cycle of operation, and a user interface coupled to thecontroller, the method comprising: determining a selected cycle ofoperation; setting a predetermined amount threshold for the selectedcycle of operation; monitoring the amount of laundry placed in thetreating chamber during loading; comparing the monitored amount to thepredetermined amount threshold; determining a filled condition of thelaundry treating appliance when the monitored amount satisfies thepredetermined amount threshold; and indicating the satisfying of thepredetermined amount threshold on the user interface of the laundrytreating appliance.
 10. The method of claim 9 wherein the predeterminedamount threshold comprises a predetermined amount range that is based onthe determined cycle of operation and the predetermined amount thresholdis satisfied when the monitored amount falls within the predeterminedamount range.
 11. The method of claim 10 wherein the indicating thesatisfying of the predetermined amount threshold on the user interfacecomprises visually indicating when the amount is in the predeterminedamount range.
 12. The method of claim 11 wherein visually indicatingwhen the amount is in the predetermined amount range comprisesilluminating a range indicator having a range greater than thepredetermined amount range and having at least one unique indicationwhen the amount is within the predetermined amount range.
 13. The methodof claim 12 wherein the unique indications comprise at least one of adifferent color, a color in combination with a sound, a graphic, ananimation, text, and sequentially displaying text.
 14. The method ofclaim 9 wherein determining the selected cycle of operation includesdetermining at least one of a selected cycle option and a selected cyclemodifier and setting the predetermined amount threshold includes settinga predetermined amount threshold for the selected cycle of operation andthe at least one of the selected cycle option and selected cyclemodifier.
 15. A laundry treating appliance for treating laundryaccording to a cycle of operation, comprising: a housing defining aninterior; a treating chamber located within the interior and receivinglaundry for treatment; an amount sensor repeatedly outputting a signalindicative of the amount of the laundry loaded in the treating chamber;a controller having a memory in which is stored a set of executableinstructions comprising at least one user-selectable cycle of operation;and a user interface operably coupled to the controller and providing aninput and output function for the controller; wherein the controllerrepeatedly receives the output from the amount sensor and compares itwith an amount threshold stored in the memory to determine when theamount of the laundry loaded into the treating chamber satisfies theamount threshold and correspondingly activates an output on the userinterface.
 16. The laundry treating appliance of claim 15, furthercomprising a level sensor outputting a signal indicative of a levelnessof at least one of the laundry treating appliance and the treatingchamber and wherein the controller receives the output from the levelsensor and adjusts the output from the amount sensor according to theoutput from the level sensor.
 17. The laundry treating appliance ofclaim 16 wherein the amount sensor is a weight sensor.
 18. The laundrytreating appliance of claim 17, further comprising at least one pair offeet extending from the housing and supporting the housing on a floorand wherein the weight sensor is operably coupled to at least one of theat least one pair of feet to sense the weight borne by the one of the atleast one pair of feet, which correlates to the weight of the laundryloaded into the treating chamber such that the weight sensor mayindicate the weight of the laundry loaded in the treating chamber. 19.The laundry treating appliance of claim 18 wherein the weight sensorcomprises multiple weight sensors and each of the multiple weightsensors is operably coupled to a separate one of the at least one pairof feet.
 20. The laundry treating appliance of claim 17, furthercomprising a suspension system and wherein the treating chamber may bemounted within the housing by the suspension system and the weightsensor is operably coupled to a portion of the suspension system tosense the weight borne by the suspension system, which correlates to theweight of the laundry loaded into the treating chamber such that theweight sensor may indicate the weight of the laundry loaded in thetreating chamber.
 21. The laundry treating appliance of claim 15 whereinthe output on the user interface comprises a laundry fill indicator toindicate at least one of a filled condition and an overfilled conditionof the treating chamber.
 22. The laundry treating appliance of claim 21wherein the laundry fill indicator comprises a weight indicator toindicate a weight of the laundry loaded into the treating chamber. 23.The laundry treating appliance of claim 21 where the laundry fillindicator comprises a range indicator that includes a range greater thanthe filled condition.
 24. The laundry treating appliance of claim 21wherein the laundry fill indicator visually indicates at least one of afilled condition and an overfilled condition of the treating chamber andcomprises one of a light emitting diode, multiple light emitting diodes,and a liquid crystal display.